Machine for bending wood.



@No Modl.)

. Ptented oct.' 3|, |899. w. G. sHEPAnn..

MACHINE FUR BENDING WOOD.

ed :une 2s, 189s.)

7 Sheets-Sheet llllilllil m: 'News Per; nnnnnnnn om LLLLLLL www NNNNNNNNN cA W. G. SHEPARD.

` MACHINE FOB BENDING WOOD.

(Applicazion med June z, 189s.) NnMudel.) 7 Sheets- Sheet 2.

No. 636,07; Patented oct. 3|, |899.

Tm: No'nms niks co.. PHOTO-Limo.. wAsNlNGToN. t:A r2.

No. 636,072. Patented oct 3118 w. a. sHEPAnn. 99' MACHINE FQR BENDING WOOD.

(Application led June 23, 189B.)

7 Sheets-Sheet 3,

(Nu Model.)

. `Patented Det. 3|, |899. W. G. SHEPARD.

MACHINE FOR BENDING WOUD.

(Application ined .rune 23, 189s.)

7 Sheets-Sheet 4 (NoY Model.)

llllll nu: norms PETERS cov. Fuero-LITRO.. wAsmnaYcm n, c.

No. 636,072. Patented Oct. 3l,- |399.

W. G. SHEPARD.

MACHINE FOB BENDING WOOD.

(Application filed June 23, 1898.)

7 Sheets-Sheet 6 (No Model.)

Munn

TH: Nonms Firms no.. Pomurna. wAsNINsTcN, u. c,

, PATENT Fris,

VEBSTER G. SHEPARD, OF BRADFORD, PENNSYLVANIA.

IVIACH-INE FOR BENDING WOOD.'

SPECIE-NATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 636,072, aatedoctober 31, isset Application tiled June 23,1898. Serial No. 684,299. (No model.)

Z'Q all whom] t Netty concern: 'y

Be'itknown thatLWEBsTER G. SHEPARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bradford, in the county of McKean and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Machine forl Bending Wood, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in machines for bending wood g and it is more particularly intended for use in bending wooden rims to a circular condition to enable the bent circular piece to be used as a rim for a bicycle-wheel.

The leading thought of the present improvement is to bend wood without subjecting the fiber to any considerable stretch along the outer side of the bent wood by compression of the fiber along the inner face of the bent wood and to attain an even or practically uniform amount of compression along the inner side or face of the rim from end to end thereof.

In the art of bending woodfor bicycle-rims as commonly practiced the bending operation comlnences at oneend of the wood rim and progresses in a curved plane to the other end; but in other instances the bending operation begins at the middle of the wooden stick and the ends are brought around in curved lines to meet each other. Devices for bending wooden rims according to either of the old methods of bending fail in a measure in the production ,of successful commercial rims from the fact, first, that they do not maintain the requisite amount of compression of the wood, or, secondly, the wood is not subjected to an even and uniform compression along the entire length of the stick which is to form theA rim. The failure to attain either of these results is highly detrimental to the production of good commercial rims. From this brief outline it will be understood that satisfactory bent rims have not been produced owing to the failure to adhere to the necessary amount of compression and to attain a uniform regular compression throughout the length of the stick during the operation of bending it into a circular rim. The first difficulty is due to the factvthat a bicycle-rim is made of a long slender stick of wood which buckles orbecomes distorted out of a true line under endwise pressure, which is necessary to compression of the stock. Ordinarily this end pressure is attained by confining the strip lengthwise between bulkheads which are attached in various ways to a pliable bending-strap. In the operation of bending a wooden strip so confined and forced mechanically around a rim-form the strip buckles inwardly and away from the bending-strap, and thus the wooden strip is relieved from the end pressure to which it should be subjected by the bulkheads, and thus the strip assumes an arched form the reverse of its proper shape and condition. Ordinarily this buckling tendency is counteracted by employing screws to which the bulkheads are attached, and as the pressure increases in the bending operation the strip will stand without buckling until the end pressure is relieved by reversing the screws. Such adjustment avoids the contrary bending of the strip at the expense of the loss of the end pressure, and itis open to the objection that the woodis stretched along the outer side of the circularly-bent rim.

To attain the highest known developments in the art of bending wooden strips intocircularV shape proper for bicycle-rims, the wooden strips should be bent uniformly at all points throughout its length as nearly as possible, and at the same time it is subjected to an even and continuous compression from end to end until the bending operation is completed and the strip bent to its truly-circular form without subjecting the fibers of the rim to stretching along its outer convex face and attaining uniformity in the compression of the fibers at the inner concave face of the circular rim.

In myinventionI propose to bend awooden strip by arching the same, due to the rotation in opposite directions of two heads, and at the same time subjecting the strip to endwise pressure between bulkheads on a bendingstrap, the continued rotation of said heads and the arching of the strip causing the heads to approach each other as the bending of the Wood progresses until the heads lie in the same plane or in alinement with each other, at which time the bending operation is completed and the strip assumes a truly-circular form, which it will retain, owing to the fulfilment of the conditions necessary to the attainment of the ends herein set forth, and the rim will not have a tendency to become dis- IOG Atorted out of its circular shape.

Instead of using two heads the same object can be accomplished by using any suitable formingsurfaee in combination with any suitable point of attachment, one end of the [ieXible strap or support being secured to the point of attachment and the other end of the support being secured to the forming-surface, the intermediate portion of the support being unsupported and movable outward beyond its normal position, and instead of having the heads approach each other simultaneously one of them may be stationary, and the distance between them may be changed or varied in any suitable manner, as by making the forming-surface stationary and causing the point of attachment to approach it.

My invention further consists in the combination, with a single driving-shaft, of a pair of freely-swinging frames journaled thereon, two head-carrying shafts mounted in said swinging frames to travel therewith and geared to the driving-shaft to be rotated thereby simultaneously in opposite directions, rotatable heads mounted ou the head-carrying shafts to rotate therewith in opposite directions to each other, and bending-forms removably connected to the heads to rotate therewith, said bending-form adapted to contain the circularly-bent strip and to be removed with said bent strip from the rotary heads on their shafts.

The invention further consists in the provision of means by which the head and bending-form may be readily adjusted to a position convenient for the attachment of the bending-strap to the bending-form without involving rotation of the shaft, in a novel attaching appliance by which the bending-form may be securelyattached to its carrying-head for adjustment with the latter, and in the provision of a latch mechanism by which one bending-form may be easily and quickly attached to or removed from its carrying-head, such latch mechanism being independent of the means for attaching the bending-form to the head for the purpose of insuring rotation of the head with the shaft.

The invention finally consists in the novel combination of elements and in the construction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

To enable others to understand the invention, I have illustrated the preferred embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation of a wood-rimbending machine constructed in accordance with my invention and illustrating the swinging frames and the devices carried thereby in their separated positions and also showing the strip which is to be bent into a .circular rim as clamped to a bending-strap which isV attached to the positively-rotatable heads of the machine. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine with the swinging fra-mes brought into alineinent with each other and showing the rotatable heads and bending-forms in their alined or coincident positions, which they assume at the completion of the bending operation to make the wooden strip assume a truly-circular form. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the machine with its elements in the position shown by Fig. 2. Fig. 4. is an enlarged plan view of the upper rotatable head and the form attached thereto. Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional elevation on the plane indicated by the dotted line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a plan view of the lower revoluble head with the lower bending-form fitted or applied thereto, and Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional elevation of the lower head and form .on the plane indicated by the dotted line 7 7 of Fig. G. Fig. S is a vertical sectional elevation through two rotatable heads and the bending-forms, illustrating the work fitted thereto and adapted to be used in connection with a clamp by which the two bendingforms and the work are held immovable in a fixed relation to each other and in a condition proper for the removal of the forms and the work from the rotatable heads of the bending-machine. Fig. 9 is a detached perspective View of the bending-strap, illustrating the bulkheads thereon and showing by dotted lines a straight length or strip of wood which is to be bent into the circular form for the production of a wooden rim suitable for manufacture into a bicycle-wheel. Fig. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View through a part of the upper head and its disk and showing a part of the bending-form with one of the latches engaging with the web of said form. Fig. 11 is a plan View of the latch-adjusting cam-formed ring detached from the upper head and the form. Fig. 12 is a plan view of one of the bending-forms. Fig. 13 is an enlarged fragmentary View showing the two bending-forms coupled together with the bending-strap and work by one form of the clamping device. Fig. 14 is a front elevation of the machine similar to Fig. 1, showing the supporting-frame for one .of the rotating bending-forms stationary and the bed attachment to prevent undue arching of the bending-strap and the stock carried thereby. Fig. 15 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 15 15 of Fig. 14C. Fig. 16 is a front ele- Vation of a modification of the machine, in which a fixed rotating bending-form is elnployed in connection with a modification of the bed attachment to prevent undue arching of the bending-strap and the stock carried thereby. Fig. 17 is a plan View of the bending mechanism shown by Fig. 16. Fig. 1S is a sectional view taken in the plane of the dotted line 1S 1S of Fig. 16.

1 designates the stationary main frame, which is shown as consisting of uprights joined together by suitable cross-beams; but the detailed construction of the frame is immaterial and may be varied at pleasure. On this frame 1 is solidly secured a series of IOO IIO

shaft-bearings 2,'which are arranged vertically and in line with each other on one side of the frame to receive a vertical drivingshaft, and this frame also carries alined hori- Y In the vertically-alined bearings 2 is journaled the vertical driving-shaft 8, on which is secured a worm-gear 9, that meshes with the worm 7 of the power-shaft 4, whereby the last-named shaft is adapted to drive the shaft 8. This shaft 8 serves as the means for pivotally supporting two swinging frames,which are mounted loosely on the shaft to swing freely thereon independently of each other, and said frames are arranged one above the other. The upper frame is indicated at 10, and it rests upon a collar 11, which serves to sustain the frame in proper position loosely on the driving-shaft, while the other frame 12 is sustained bya stop-collar 13, which is suitably attached to the shaft 8 above the lower bearing therefor on the frame 1. These frames 10 12 are arranged in vdifferent horizontal planes to swing freely from the position shown by Fig. 1 to the position shown by Figs.

2 and 3, in which last-named position the ro-` be attached to the bending-forms, as will hereinafter appear.

The swinging frames are provided at their outer free ends with shaft-bearings 14, and in the bearings of the upper frame 10 is fitted a shaft 15, which is adapted to carry the upper rotatable head and bending-form and is adapted to be moved vertically in its bearings for the purpose of withdrawing the rotatable head from engagement with the bending-form preparatory to removing the two bending-forms with the work from the rotatable heads of the machine. The bearings 14 of the lower swinging frame 12 receive a vertical shaft 16, which is adapted to carry the lower rotatable head and the bending-form associated therewith; but this shaft 16 is not slidable in its bearings, but is free to rotate therein. The headcarrying shaft 15 of the upper frame is positively driven from the vertical shaft 8, on which the frame is adapted to swing,by means Aof a sprocket-chain 17, which passes around and engages with the sprocket-wheels 18 19 ou the shafts 15 and 8, respectively, and thus the head-carrying shaft 15 is adapted to be driven by the vertical shaft 8, around which` the frame 10 is adapted to swing or turn, so that in all positions of the frame 10 in its relation to the shaft 8 the head-carrying shaft 15 will be positively driven.

On the lower swinging frame 12 of the inachine is journaled, in suitable bearings, a short vertical counter-shaft 20, which is arranged contiguous to the vertical shaft 8 and parallel therewith, and the counter-shaft 2O is positively driven :from the shaft 8 through the intermeshing gears 21, which are suitablye attached to said shafts 8 and 20, which counter-shaft is adapted to travel with the frame 12 in its swinging movementaround the driving-shaft 8, and the lower head-carrying shaft 16 in the frame 12 is operatively connected with the counter-shaft 20 by achain-22, which is fitted to the sprockets 23 and 24, secured on the shafts 16 and 20, respectively. It will be observed that a counter-shaft is interposed between the lower head-carrying shaft 16 and the vertical driving-shaft 8, and the shaft 16 in the lower swinging frame is thus adapted to be driven in the opposite direction to the head-carrying shaft 15 in the upper swinging frame, each of the head-,carrying shafts being positively driven by the described connections with the vertical shaft 8 .27, that serves to looselyT couple it to the rotatable carrying-head 28. This carrying-head 28 is provided with a hub or sleeve 29, which is made fast to the shaft 16, and this rotatable head has ball-bearing engagement at 30 and 31 with the disk 25 and the plate 27 of the fiange 26, whereby the disk 25 is loosely fitted ou the shaft and to the head, to be rotated thereon by and independently of the head-carrying shaft 16. vThis rotatable head 28 is operatively connected with the disk 25 by means of a ratchet 32 and a series of dragging pawls 35V, which are arranged to permit the carrying-head to be turned by hand in one direction, but which prevent the carryinghead from being turned by hand in the other direction and insure rotation of the carryinghead with the disk 25 when the latter is driven bythe shaft 16, which is operatively connect-r ed with the counter-shaft geared to the vertical shaft ",8. It will thus be seen that the disk 25 is adapted to rotate with the shaft 16 through the ratchet connection between the carrying-head and the shaft-disk 25; but said disk 25 is free to be turned in the opposite IOO .at all points of the swinging adjustment of IIS direction by hand for the purpose of adjusting the bending-form 34 into a position where the work-attaching clamp may engage the work and bending-strap. This bending-form 34 is circular and constructed to produce a solid rim and an inwardly-extending web 35, which is arranged centrally within the rim of the form, and from this web of the bendingform ext-ends a series of lugs 36, which are arranged to have interlocking engagement with a series of lugs 38 on the short arms 38 of the disk 25. In applying the bending-form 34 to the lower head it is placed in a position where its lugs 36 are out of line with the lugs 38 on the disk 25, and by giving the form a slight turn in one direction the lugs 36 and 38 are caused to interlock with each other, and thus make the bending-form fast with the disk 25, so that the bending-forni will rotate with the disk when the latter is adjusted by hand or when it is positively driven by the ratchet-and-disk connections with the head 28 and shaft 16. The bending-form is thus connected rmly with the carrying head in a detachable manner, and by giving the bending-form a slight rotation in the opposite direction, required to couple the form to the disk 25, said form will be readily released from the disk and may be lifted out of position when it is desired to remove the same, together with the work attached thereto and the upper bending-form.

The upper carrying-head and bending-form are rotatable with the shaft l5, and said head.

and form are similar in construction and arrangement to the parts hereinbefore described of the lower head and form; but it is necessary to provide a latch mechanism by which the upper bending-form may be connected to the carrying-head when the parts are first assembled together and previous to the interlocking engagement of said upper form with the carrying-head. A disk 40 is loosely fitted to the upper-head-carrying shaft 15, and above this disk is arranged the upper carrying-head 41, which is provided with a sleeve or hub 42, that is secured firmly on the shaft. On the upper face of the disk 40 is provided an annular ratchet 43, with which is adapted to engage a series of dragging-pawls 44, which are hung loosely on the carrying-head 4l in position to engage with the ratchet 43, and the disk 40 is thus adapted to be turned in one direction by hand to have its draggingpawls slip idly over the ratchet; but when the shaft 15 and head 4l are rotated the ratchet and pawls insure rotation of the disk 40 with the head and said shaft. The disk 40 is provided outside of the line of the carrying-head with two or more lugs 45, which are castintegral therewith, and in these lugs are pivoted, as at 46, the balanced latches 46. The nose 47 of each latch is arranged to engage with the web of the upper bendingform 48, and the latch is constructed to have its heel overbalance the nose end of said latch, so that when the form is placed in position opposite to the disk the latches will engage automatically with the web 49 of said upper bending-form. The llange of the upper carrying-head has ball-bearing engagement, as at 52, with the disk 40, and around this flanged head 41 is loosely fitted an axially-turning ring 50, which is adapted to move freely a limited distance around the carrying-head. This ad j usting-ring 50 is provided with a plate 5l, that spans the space between the ring and the head and is constructed to have a ballbearing engagement at 53 with the upper side of the head, and on the outer face of the adjusting-ring is provided a series of cam-lugs 54, which are adapted,.when the ring 50 is turned in one direction, to ride against the heels of the latches for the purpose of retracting the nose ends thereof from engagement with the web of the bending-form, thereby simultaneously releasing all the latches and permitting the bending-form to be readily detached from the carrying-head. In addition to the latches for connecting the upper bending-form to the disk 4l I employ the lugs 55, which are made integral with the web of the form 48 and are adapted to impinge against the lugs 56 on short arms 561L of the upper disk 40, and these lugs are arranged to permit the form 48 to be disengaged from the disk 40 by simply lifting the upper head out of the form, as it is not necessary to rotate the form on the head previous to lifting the latter to separate the form and head. The latches 46 are loosly engaged with the web of the bending-form, so as to permit the axial turning of said bending-form on the disk; but the lugs 55 are adapted to have engagement with the similar lugs on the disk for the purpose of holding the bending-form in relation to the disk and the carrying-head 41 toinsure rotation of the form with the head when the shaft 15 is driven by its power connections with the shaft 8. The latches 46 serve as convenient means for connecting the bending-form readily to the carrying-head in a convenient position for its lugs to engage with the lugs of the disk; but the engaging feature of the lugs on the disk and form serves to hold the form in such relation to the disk as to insure rotation of the parts thus detachably coupled together.

The shaft 15, which carries the upper rotatable head 41, is adapted to move vertically a limited distance in its bearings on the upper swinging frame 10, and in this vertical travel of the shaft 15 the carrying-head and the parts associated therewith are designed to move with the shaft; but the bending-form 48 is not designed to travel upwardly with the head and shaft. After the work has been bent and the swinging frames adjusted to a position where they assume the same Vertical plane, so as to bring the shafts 15 16, the carrying-heads, and the bending-forms in vertical alinement with each other, as represented by Figs. 2 and 3, it is necessary to clamp the bending-forms, with the Workwhich IOO IIO

is bent'or coiled around said forms, in rigid relation to each other, and Aprovision must also be made for retracting the upper head and its shaft from engagement with the upper bending-form, so that the two forms, with the work clamped thereto,maybe readily removed from the machine. To attain this end,'I make the shaft 15 movable vertically in its bearings on the frame 10 and cause the upper carrying-head to travel therewith, so that the shaft and head are adapted to have an upward movement for a distance greater than the depth of the form, whereby the head is re-v tracted from the for-m, and the latter is free to be removed, with the workand the lower form, from the machine.v .This vertically-movable head-carrying shaft 1-5 `is counterbalanced, as at 62, and-provided with-an adjusting-lever 62a for conveniently lifting the shaft and the upper head, and after the work and form shall have been removed the shaft and head return to their initial positions through the medium of a counterbalance. In Figs. 8 and 13 of the drawings I have represented a construction of the clamp which is' suitable for holding the-two bending-forms on the work in immovable relation to each other when the formsand work are to be removed from the carrying-heads of the machine. Two or more of these clamps 58 may be used to hold the forms and work together, and each clamp is constructed in the form of a yoke, with an enlarged bearing-head 59 at one end thereof. In the other end of theyoke-shaped clamp is mounted a clam ping-.screw 60, which is provided at one end with a suitable handpiece and at its other endis equipped with'a swiveled foot-piece 6l, which is adapted lto bind against the bending-strap which is used in the machine.

One of the leading and essential features' of my invention is the provision of means by which the work or stock is firmly gripped at its end or ends to be subjected to endwise compression and is caused to arch outwardly in the center against a pliable bending-strap dueto the opposite 'rotation of` the bendingforms. I employ the bending-strap 63, with the bulkhead 64 at its respectivel ends, vin order to subject the work to the endwise pressure which is essential to the proper bending of the work and effect the production of good commercial rims. l

The tendency ofthe stock or work to bend away from the strap under the force of end pressure exerted lon the stock due to its connement by the bulkheads is a vital point to be overcome in the'bending of wood rims, because under endwise-pressure the stock is compelled to assume an arched shape either way from the strap, (in which case the work alone will be`nd,) or the stock will bend toward the strap, so that the stock and strap will arch simultaneously and in parallel relation.

important feature of my invention resides in the forcing of the work or stock to bend backwardly against the bending-strap owing to Onev opposite rotation of the forms and heads sil m ultaneously, and thus the full endwise pressure and full .uniform compression of the work Without stretching are attained in my machine. This bending-strap 63 is of pliable ductilemetal, so as to bend easily and conform quickly to the curvature of the work, and it is of greater length than the work to be bent. At the ends of said bending-strap are provided the bulkheads 64, which are rigidlysecured to the strap ina suitable way; but one method of securing the bulkheadstol the strap is toit the bulkheads against one face of the strap at a distance apart equal to the length of the wooden strip which is to be bent into the circular rim, the ends of the strap are then bent or doubled around the bulkheads', and bolts are passed through thev thereof, and these bulkheads are adapted to subject the work to endwise pressure in the operation of bending a straight stick into circular form. The bending-formsare provided with suitable clamps or engaging devices,

with which the bulkheads of the pliable bending-strap are adapted to be engaged.

The axially-adjustable ring 50 is provided in the' intervals Vbetween the cam-lugs 54 thereon with the locking-arms 57, which are disposed in close relation to the lugs 54 'and have their free ends arranged to engage with the heels of thelatches when t-he bendingform is adjusted into .engagement with said IOO latches, whereby the locking-arms 57 serve to prevent accidental release of the latches `from the bending-form and overcome any premature uncoupling of the bending-'form from the rotatable head. The ring 50 is, furthermore, provided with radially-extending hand-grasps 57, by which it may be conveniently turned around the carrying-head.

In the operation of the machine the swinging framesv are separated and assume the positions shown by Fig. l of the drawings. The

lower bending-form is tted to the lower head and turned slightly thereon by hand to bring its lugs into interlocking engagement with the lugs of the disk 4:0. The upper bendingform is then lifted intoplace beneath the upper head and the latches thereon engage with the form-web to connect the parts, after IIO ment of each form and head. The blank or stick of wood having been previously softened by steaming the same, the blank is fitted against the strap and between the bulkheads thereon, and said strap and work are now placed in the clamps of the two bending-forms. The machine is ready for operation and the clutch G is adjusted to make the pulley 5 fast with the shaft LI, which drives the shaft 8, and this last-named shaft in turn drives the shafts 15 1G, through the gear connections, in opposite directions simultaneously. The heads and forms on the oppositely-rotated shafts are correspondingly driven, and this rotation of the two heads causes the wooden stick or blank to at once assume an arched or curved form. As the heads and forms continue to rotate, the wooden strip is bent or curved around the forms, and the stick or blank is thus shortened to cause the swinging frames to approach each other. The continued rotation of the heads and progressive bending of the wooden stick or blank around the forms insures the continued approach of the frames and heads until the frames assume positions in the same vertical plane and the shafts l5 1G, the two heads, and the forms are in vertical alinement, thus completelybending the wooden lblank into a truly circular form. As the two frames are free to swing toward each other and as each frame carries a positively-driven head, the wooden blank is subjected uniformly to the bending operation from both ends. As the work is held or gripped firmly at each 'end and the forms rotate in opposite directions simultaneously, the work is forced backward against the bending-strap, and thus the work is subjected to endwise pressure between the bulkheads and maintained in contact with the bendingstrap during the bending operation, so as to insure the desired uniform and continuous compression at every point throughout the length of the work and without any tendency to become distorted or to buckle At the completion of the bending operation the clamps 5S are fitted around the forms, strap, and work, so as to have the clamp-heads bear against the webs of the forms andthe screws press against the bending-strap to rigidly couple the two forms and the work together, the work being coiled partially on the two forms. The clamped forms, with the work, are now released from the latches by adjusting the cam-formed ring on the upper head, and the upper shaft and its head are now raised to retract l[he upper head from the upper form, thus permitting the operator tolift the forms and work out of the machine. The frames may now be swung apart and other bending-forms fitted to the heads, thus placing the machine in condition to repeat the operation.

As explained already, an essential feature in the operation of the machine is the relative arrangement of parts which causes the stock or strip of wood to arch backwardly against the bending-strap, thus retaining the full end pressure and insuring full compression without stretching, and while the desired operation can be secured by having the upper and lower form-carrying frames 10 and l2 mounted to swing, in the manner herein explained, still it will be observed that the same operation can be carried out if onlyone of such frames is permitted to swing, while the other frame remains stationary or in a fixed position, such adaptation of the machine being shown in Fig. 14E of the drawings. In this figure of the drawings is shown the same construction of machine as already described, with the single exception that the lower form-carrying frame 12 is designed to remain in a stationary or fixed position, while the upper form-carrying frame 10 has a full swing from its initial position to a position i directly over the said lower fori'n-carrying frame, and in this use of the machine the material is bent in precisely the same way as if both of the form-carrying frames were permitted to swing as described. lVhile the swinging movement of both frames is a desirable one, still in actual practice it has been found that the machine can be controlled with greater facility when one of the swinging frames is rigidly secured at a given point and the other frame permitted to have a full swing.

With certain classes of wood, and especially woods having a straight and even grain, it is not necessary to restrict or oppose the arching of the bending-strap 63 and the wood stock carried thereby; but some wood is very difficult to bend, because of its burls and cross-grain, and with such wood the undue arching thereof will cause a bunching at the defective points. In woods of the class referred to wherever the burls or similar places occur the stock or rim-strips are necessarily weak, and hence, as the stock or strip arches, they show a tendency to kink or makeashort abrupt bend. So to counteract this tendency it is necessary to afford the stock or strip of wood su pport at the weak places, or, in other words, to restrict or oppose the arching thereof. To accomplish this very desirable result, I employ a segmental or arched bed-piece 70, whose concave surface or side 7l is designed to conform to the arching shape of the bending-strap and the stock carried thereby as the bending operation commences and progresses. The segmental or arched bed-piece '70 is preferably arranged on a supportingtable 72, located at one side of the machine and having suitable supporting legs or standards 73, and to provide a proper connection between the bed-piece and its supportingtable 72 I preferably employ a pair of swinging links 74. These swinging links 74 are pivoted at their extremities, respectively, to the table 72 and to the bed-piece 70, so as to permit the said bed-piece to swingoutwardly as the swinging rotating form 48 advances, thereby compensating for the outward thrust IOO IIO

IZO

of the form-and the swinging of the frame carrying the same. It will be observed that in using the form of bed attachment shown in Figs. 14 and 15 of the drawings it is necessary to operate the machine with one of the frames and bending-form carried thereby ina fixed position, such positioning of parts not interfering with the bending operation, as already explained.

It will be seen that when themachine is operated in connection with a bed attachment, such as shown in Figs. 14 and 15 of the drawings,the swinging rotating bending-form 48 travels along the concave surface or side 7l of the bed-piece 70 the entire length of the latter, and the pressure of said bed-piece against the arched bending-strap 63 and the stock or strip of woodcar'ried thereby is maintained through the medium of a pressure-spring or equivalent device 75, having a suitable connection with the bed-piece and a fixed point of attachment, and it will also be understood that said pressure-sprin g or equivalent device will serve to return the bed-piece 70 to a normal position as soon as the traveling or swinging bending-form has cleared the end thereof nearest the fixed rotating bending-form 34.

The essential features of the machine disclosed in Figs. 14 and 15 are also embodied in Figs. 16 and 17, in which modification only one of the rotating bending-forms is employed, which bending-form is preferably the lower form 34, as the same must remain in a fixed position or plane to carry out the operation of the modied construction. In this modified construction of the machine, while two rotating bending-forms are notnecessary, still the segmental or arched bedpiece forms an essential part of the structure, to permit the arching of the bending-strap 63 and the stock carried thereby, while at the same time restricting the bending so as to prevent undue arching.

In the modification involving the use of only one of the rotating bending-forms the segmental or arched bed-piece (designated by the num ber 70W) has a suitable sliding connection with the supporting-table 72, so as toA be capable of longitudinal movement thereon, and thereby follow the travel of the bendingstrap and the stock as the same are wound up spirally on the bending-surface of the fixed rotating bending-form 34. One vend of the 'bending-strap 63 is connected with the fixed rotating form 34 in the manner already explained, while the other end of the strap is suitably fastened at the point 76 to the longitudinally-slidable bed-piece 70, at or near one end of the latter, and at this end the said strap has fitted thereto a screw-ad4 justed abutment or bulkhead 77, against which bears one end of the stock or strip of wood, said adjustable abutment or bulkhead 77 being adjusted to accommodate or compensate for slight variance in the length of the stock fitted to the bending-strap.

To provide for carrying out the bending operation in the modified construction in the same maunerasherein described and contemplated bythe present invention, the bendingstrap 63 is arranged diagonally on the concave surface or side of the bed-piece 70a, while the bending-surface of the form 34 is sufficiently wide to provide for the spiral wrapping thereon of the strap and the stock or strip of wood carried thereby. Vith the parts positioned as described and one end of the bending-strap connected with the fixed rotating form 34 the said form as it rotates will spirally wrap thereon the bending-strap and the stock or strip of wood, and thereby necessarily slide the bed-piece 70a on its supporting-table, so that said bed-piece will maintain its proper relation to the bendingstrap and prevent undue arching of the strap and stock in the same manner as the bedpiece shown in the form of inachineillustrated in Figs. 14 and 15 of the drawings, in both forms of the machine it being observed that the bed-piece cooperates with the form whose periphery fol lows the concaved surface or side thereof.

I am aware that other lchanges in the form and proportion of parts and in the details of construction may be made by a skilied mechanic without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention, and I therefore reserve the right to make such other modifications as clearly fall within the scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is- 1. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of swinging frames, oppositely-rotating heads mounted therein, and means for positively rotating the heads during the swinging movement of the frames in permitting the heads to approach each other as the work is contracted by coiling the same uniformly from each end thereof', substantially as described.

2. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of swinging frames, oppositely-rotating heads mounted thereon, bending-forms coupled to said heads to rotate therewith and adapted to be clamped together previous to removal from the heads, and means for positively rotating the heads in opposite directions, substantially as described.

3. In a machine for bending wood, the combination with rotating heads arranged to travel one toward the other and assume alined or coincident positions, of bendingforms separatel y coupled to said heads to travel therewith, and means arranged to embrace said bending-forms and removable therewith and with the work from said heads, whereby the forms and the work may be removed from the machine without permitting the work to uncoil, substantially as described.

4. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a rotatable IOO IOS

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disk, of a carrying-head, clutch devices between said disk and head to permit the disk to be adjusted in one direction and to couple the head and disk to insure joint movement in the opposite direction, and a bending-form coupled detachably to said disk, substantially as described.

5. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a rotatable disk, of a carrying-head, ratchet mechanism between the carrying-head and the rotatable disk to permit rotation of the carrying-head in one direction independently of said disk, and a bending-form provided with means which coact with devices on the disk to rigidly couple the bending-form to said disk and insure joint movement of the bending-form with the disk, substantially as described.

6. In a machine for bending Wood into circular form, the combination with a shaft, and a head rotating therewith, of an adjustable disk clutched to said head to turn in one direction independently thereof, a bendingform, latch mechanism between the bendingform and said disk, and coacting devices on the form and disk to couple the part-s together,

substantially as described.

7. In a machine for bending wood, the combination with a carrying-head, of a bendingform fitted revolubly to the head, coacting devices on the forni and head for engaging the parts together to insure rotation of the form with the head, and latch devices substantially suoli as described arranged to temporarily couple the form to the head and permit the latter to turn in either direction for the locking devices to be brought into or out of engagement, substantially as described.

8. In a machine for bending wood into eircular form, the combination with a shaft, of a carrying-head, a disk loosely fitted to the shaft to turn in one direction, clutch devices between said head and disk to couple the parts together and insure rotation of the disk with the head and shaft, a bending-form, and means on the disk and form to detachabiy unite said form to the disk, substantially as described.

9. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with oppositelyrotating shafts and means for supporting said shafts to permit the same to approach each other as the bending operation progresses, of carrying-heads clutched to the shafts to rotate in one direction therewith and free to be adjusted independently of each other on their respective shafts in the opposite direction, and bending-forms detachabiy coupled to the respective heads, substantially as described.

l0. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with swinging frames, of rotary shafts carried by said frames and one arranged to be adjusted endwise with respect to the other shaft, carrying -heads mounted on said shafts for rotation therewith, and bending-forms detachably coupled to the carrying-heads, whereby the carryinghead on the endwise-adjustable shaftmay be retracted from its bending-form to permit the bending-forms and work to be removed independently from the machine, substantially as described.

ll. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of oppositely-rotating heads, means for permitting said heads to maintain their relation in the same plane during the bending operation and to gradually approach each other as said operation progresses,bending forms detachably coupled to said heads for rotation therewith, means for clamping the work and forms together, and means whereby one head may be retracted from said bending-form when said form is released from said head, substantially as described.

12. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of a drivingshaft, swinging frames loosely fitted on said shaft to approach each other freely, head-carrying shafts journaled in the swinging frames and geared to the driving-shaft to be driven in opposite directions positively thereby, carrying-heads mounted on said shafts to rotate tl1erewitl1,and bending-formsdetachably coupled to said carrying-heads, substantially as described.

13. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of the drivingshaft, swinging frames mounted thereon to freely approach each other, head-carrying shafts journaled in said frames, direct gearing between the shaft on one frame and the driving-shaft to rotate the former in one direction, indirect gearing carried by the other frame and arranged between the driving-shaft and the other head-carrying shaft to rotate the latter in a contrarydirection to the firstnamed head-carrying shaft, carrying-heads mounted on the two head-carrying shafts and arranged in different planes to come opposite to each other at the completion of the bending operation, and bending-forms mounted removably on said carrying-heads, substantially as described.

l-t. In a machine for bending wood into circular form,-the combination with the drivingshaft, of carrying-frames loosely mounted on said shaft in different planes and arranged to approach each other freely as the bending operation progresses, rotatable heads carried by the frames and geared to the driving-shaft to be rotated in opposite directions simultaneously thereby,and bending-forms detachably coupled to the carrying-heads to rotate therewith and arranged with said heads in different planes to come opposite to each other when the frames assume alined positions at the completion of the bendingoperation, substantially as described.

l5. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of a drivingshaft, a power-shaft geared to said drivingshaft, swinging frames loosely mounted on IOO IIO

the driving-shaft in different planes and ar ranged to approach each other freely as the bending operation progresses, rotatable heads carried by the swinging frames and geared to the driving-shaft to be rotated in opposite directions thereby, bending-forms detachably coupled to said rotatable heads and arranged to aline with each other when the frames assume positions in the same plane, and means for retracting one head from its bending-form, substantially as described.

16. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a drivingshaft and loosely-swinging frames, of rotatable heads carried by said frames and driven from the said shaft, bending-forms coupled to said heads, and a bending-strap provided with bulkheads to confine the work laterally and subject the same to endwise pressure, said strap being connected to both bendingforms and adapted to be coiled uniformly around the same as the forms rot-ate with the heads and the frames and heads approach each other, substantially as described.

17. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a rotatable head, of a carrying-disk mounted for rotation in one direction independently of said head, pawl-and-ratchet mechanism between said head and disk, a bending-form, and coacting lugs on the disk and bending-form to detachably and rigidly couple the form to the disk, substantially as described.

18. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination of a carryinghead, a bending-form provided with a web, gravity-.latches mounted on the head for engagement with the web of the form, and interlocking devices for rigidly coupling the bending-form to the head, substantially as described.

19. In a machine for` bending wood into circular form, the combination with a shaft and a rotatable disk thereon, of a carrying-head having ball-bearing engagement with said disk, a ratchet on the disk, dragging-pawls carried by the head for engagement with the ratchet, and a bending-form coupled rigidly and detachably with the disk, substantially as described.

20. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a rotatable carrying-head and a bending-form, of latch devices for connecting the form to the head, and means whereby the latch devices may be simultaneously adjusted to release the form from engagement with the head,substantially as described.

2l. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a carrying- 6o head and a bending-form, of a series of gravity-latches mounted on the head and engaging with the web of said form, and an adjusting-ring rotatably fitted to the head and provided with cams which engage with the latches to simultaneously release the latter from the form, substantially as described.

22. In a machine for bending wood into circular form, the combination with a carryinghead and a bending-form, of latches for coupling the head and form detachably together, a rotatable adjusting-ring constructed for engagement with the heels of the latches to release the latter simultaneously, and locking-arms carried by the adj usting-ring to engage wit-h the latches and prevent premature release thereof from the bending-form, substantially as described.

23. In a machine for .bending wood, the combination of an arched bed, and a rotating form having means for the attachment of one end of the stock thereto, said bed and form being relatively movable, whereby the form will follow the concaved side of the bed longitudinally thereof, substantially as set forth.

24. In a wood-bending machine, an arched bed, a pliable strap having means for the attachment of the work thereto, and a rotating bending-form engaging one end of the strap and rotating in a direction to arch the strap and stock against the concaved .surface of the bed, substantially as set forth.

25. In a wood-bending machine, the combination of xed and swinging rotating bending-forms,- a pliable bending-strap having means for the attachment of the stock thereto and connected at its opposite ends respectively With the separate bending-forms, and an arched bed-piece yieldingly supported against said strap, substantially as set forth.

26. In a wood-bending machine, the combination of fixed and swinging rotating bending-forms, a pliable bending-strap having means for the attachment of the stock thereto and connected at its opposite ends respectively with the separate bending-forms, a longitudinally-movable arched bed-piece, swinging supports for said bed-piece, and a pressure-spring or equivalent connection with the bed-piece to provide for holding the same against the arched strap and stock carried thereby, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto afxed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

W. Gr. SHEPARD.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. SIGGERs, HAROLD H. SIMMs.

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